Various types of bags made of thermoplastic material are known in the art. Many such prior art bags include a combination carrying and closure means for the bag which makes it possible to provide a tight closure thereof so that its contents cannot readily be lost, nor can dirt or moisture readily enter the bag.
It is also well-known in the art to provide bags whose main body portion is formed of a thin film of thermoplastic material, such as the more common vinyl or polyethylene plastics. The prior art further teaches the use of a combination carrying and closure means for such a thin film plastic bag which is heat sealed or cemented or otherwise fastened to the thin film. It is also common to fabricate the carrying and closure means from thermoplastic material having a substantially heavier gauge than that of the thin film used for the main portion of the bag since this provides a desirable rigidity to the mouth of the bag, thereby making it more convenient to open the bag and to maintain it open for obtaining access to the bag's interior.
In addition to the following, it is also known in the art to provide a combination carrying and closure means, which consists essentially of two generally congruent strips of a semi-rigid material, such as a heavy gauge plastic, which are welded or heat sealed to the mouth of the bag. To open the bag, it is then only necessary to grasp the two handle portions with one's right and left hands, respectively, and separate the two handle portions. Quite often, a securing or locking means is employed, which tends to hold the two oppositely disposed handle portions together, thereby effectively maintaining a tight closure of the mouth of the bag. In its most practical form, such a fastening means may comprise frictionally engaging studs and recesses as shown, for example, in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,140,038 to Lagarre.
Carrier bags of the type disclosed in the above-mentioned Lagarre patent have achieved great commercial success throughout the world. However, there has frequently been a need to provide an alternative type of carrying means; namely, a hook which readily adapts the carrier bag to being displayed, prior to sale, from a display rod or the like. It has been found that the ability to display packaged goods in carrier bags while hung from a display rod or the like contributes greatly to the saleability of the goods. Attempts have been made to provide carrier bags for such display on a rod, by providing a recess or indentation along the inner edge of the outwardly extending bow portion, such recess providing a detent into which a rod can fit. However, it has been found that this is not an entirely satisfactory solution to the problem because of the tendency of the handle portion to slide laterally off the rod, thereby resulting in an unbalanced support for the bag, which tends to tilt the bags in various positions, rather than allowing them to hang vertically.
Other of these prior art bags, employing a combination hook and handle for display and carrying purposes, feature a hook handle comprised of two plastic handle members each of which possesses a hook-like top portion as well as a hand-receiving loop so that, when mated together, the two members form a single hooking device intended for display purposes as well as a handle for carrying. However, such a device is not the most aesthetically desirable. Furthermore, bags employing such a device must be removed from the rack or stand from which they hang before the contents of the bag can be removed for the purposes of either further inspection or determination of texture of the goods.